[Trivia] Stations only open for arriving or departing passengers?

[etr221]

Coming out of discussion regarding York Road (King's Cross) station, were there any (other) stations that were only open either for arriving or departing passengers?

 

[hexagon789]

Coming out of discussion regarding York Road (King's Cross) station, were there any (other) stations that were only open either for arriving or departing passengers?

Covent Garden was Exit Only for a period in the 2000s or so, but I forget the reason.

 

[The exile]

Covent Garden was Exit Only for a period in the 2000s or so, but I forget the reason.

Isn't it exit only regularly at weekends?

 

[hexagon789]

Isn't it exit only regularly at weekends?

Didn't know that was the case; in my example it was 2007 - it was Exit Only all the time.

 

[BrianW]

Isn't it exit only regularly at weekends?

Similarly Camden Town, both in relation to busyness/ haelth and safety with nearby markets etc.

And in relation to eg fotbaqll matches,eg Emirates/ Arsenal/ Finsbury Park.

Only 'temporary' even if regularly?

 

[Bletchleyite]

There is about to be a new one on the Valley Lines! It's nominally an arrivals platform but on a different site. I forget what station though.

 

[Rescars]

London Necropolis station would be a contender of course, but perhaps this is not what the OP has in mind!

 

[Dr Hoo]

London Necropolis station would be a contender of course, but perhaps this not what the OP has in mind!

The mourners did, of course, generally make return journeys.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 18 May 2025 ==

There is about to be a new one on the Valley Lines! It's nominally an arrivals platform but on a different site. I forget what station though.

Aberdare, I believe.

 

[alholmes]

There is about to be a new one on the Valley Lines! It's nominally an arrivals platform but on a different site. I forget what station though.

Aberdare, though whether it’s a separate station is debatable. But the arrival and departure platforms do have separate location codes on RTT. The existing code is ABA, with XCB for the arrival platform.

 

[Taunton]

Templecombe had a platform on the S&D line to Bournemouth, the "Lower Station", quite detached from the main station and about half a mile walk along unlit lanes, which at least in the 20th century was only used for just the last terminating arrival of the day to save the reversal and provision of shunting loco to get up to the main station, and noted in the timetable as such.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Manchester United Football Ground station, when last in use, perhaps? Open for arriving passengers before a match, and then departing passengers afterwards? Possibly a similar situation at the former Wembley Stadium station, i.e. the one that branched off the main line onto a loop line before closing in the late 1960s.

 

[341o2]

I'm a little uncertain, as York Rd was used only for trains to Moorgate pre electrification, returning by a separate line to the main station, platform 8.
On this basis, I suggest Birkenhead Hamilton Square, which is underground, and a new platform 3 with burrowing junction constructed to allow New Brighton/West Kirby trains to avoid conflict with Rock Ferry trains (since extended to Chester/Ellesmere Port)

 

[Magdalia]

Coming out of discussion regarding York Road (King's Cross) station, were there any (other) stations that were only open either for arriving or departing passengers?

There is a possible misunderstanding here.

York Road was not arrivals only. In the morning peak it was possible to get on at York Road and depart for stations towards Moorgate. But it did only have trains going in the up direction. In the evening peak there were up trains that terminated at York Road then ran empty to Moorgate to form down services.

I'm a little uncertain, as York Rd was used only for trains to Moorgate pre electrification, returning by a separate line to the main station, platform 8.

Platform numbers at Kings Cross are complicated because most of them were renumbered, I think in the early 1970s.

What is now platform 8 is now the highest numbered platform in the main trainshed. Before renumbering this was platform 10.

The Hotel Curve platform, used by the trains from Moorgate, was platform 16 before renumbering and platform 14 after renumbering.

 

[Dr Hoo]

I'm a little uncertain, as York Rd was used only for trains to Moorgate pre electrification, returning by a separate line to the main station, platform 8.
On this basis, I suggest Birkenhead Hamilton Square, which is underground, and a new platform 3 with burrowing junction constructed to allow New Brighton/West Kirby trains to avoid conflict with Rock Ferry trains (since extended to Chester/Ellesmere Port)

All platforms (quite apart from the context of the entire station) are used by joining and alighting passengers.

 

[Cricketer8for9]

Though historically major termini had an arrival and a departure side. So a station could have a platform only used for arrivals - trains went out ECS and one used for departures - train arrived ECS. The layouts at Paddington and Euston in particular facilitated this. At Euston there was an up engine line to get the train engine over from the arrival to the departure side and the flyover at Old Oak Common East allowed Paddington departures to be worked from OOC to the departure side at Paddington without crossing all the lines on the flat.

 

[Helvellyn]

The Waterloo & City Line platforms at Waterloo are one for arrivals and one for departures, and of course used to be BR.

Doesn't Bank DLR work on a similar basis?

 

[norbitonflyer]

The Waterloo & City Line platforms at Waterloo are one for arrivals and one for departures, and of course used to be BR.

Yes, but the station as a whole has both arriving and departing passengers.

There are some stations which are, at certain times, only open to allow passengers to arrive by train - usually termini late at night after the last departure has left, or served by "set down only" services at such times (such as overnight sleeper services at some intermediate points). You may not enter the station on foot at such times.

 

[BrianW]

Platforms where all stopping trains are either 'set down' or 'pick up' only might also qualify? Are there many/ any?

Stations with a bay line with platforms both sides could have passengers alight onto one platform and others join from the other?

 

[Rescars]

Though historically major termini had an arrival and a departure side. So a station could have a platform only used for arrivals - trains went out ECS and one used for departures - train arrived ECS. The layouts at Paddington and Euston in particular facilitated this. At Euston there was an up engine line to get the train engine over from the arrival to the departure side and the flyover at Old Oak Common East allowed Paddington departures to be worked from OOC to the departure side at Paddington without crossing all the lines on the flat.

Originally Paddington had carriage turntables and cross tracks at right angles to the running lines so stock could be moved from the arrival to the departure platform without leaving the station. The transepts in the roof indicate where the cross tracks were positioned. Must have been quite a spectacle to watch!

 

[Lloyds siding]

Platforms where all stopping trains are either 'set down' or 'pick up' only might also qualify? Are there many/ any?

Stations with a bay line with platforms both sides could have passengers alight onto one platform and others join from the other?

I made a few trips into the bay platform at Greenford, and the doors on one side would open well before the other side. The people waiting on the other side to board suggested this was normal practice.

 

[Rescars]

I made a few trips into the bay platform at Greenford, and the doors on one side would open well before the other side. The people waiting on the other side to board suggested this was normal practice.

Rather like lift doors on the Underground!

 

[Lloyds siding]

Or Merseyrail at James Street and Hamilton Square!

 

[Sir Felix Pole]

Boat trains from Millbay Docks in Plymouth only worked up to Paddington - ocean liners did not call at Plymouth westbound. It didn't actually have a platform, however - portable steps were provided for each carriage! The rival LSWR Ocean Quay station at Stonehouse Pool did have an island platform but it was only operational from 1904 to 1910.

 

[LickeyIncliner]

Manchester United Football Ground station, when last in use, perhaps? Open for arriving passengers before a match, and then departing passengers afterwards? Possibly a similar situation at the former Wembley Stadium station, i.e. the one that branched off the main line onto a loop line before closing in the late 1960s.

Easter Road Park Halt (for Hibs' Easter Road Stadium) was apparently for arriving football excursions only - see https://www.railscot.co.uk/locations/E/Easter_Road_Park_Halt/

 

[bramling]

The Waterloo & City Line platforms at Waterloo are one for arrivals and one for departures, and of course used to be BR.

Doesn't Bank DLR work on a similar basis?

Bank DLR is normally thus, but it is possible for trains to arrive and depart from the same platform. It happens occasionally, I’m not sure if there might be the odd service at the extremes of the day booked to do so.

Waterloo W&C is strictly arrivals and departures though. The signalling is not designed to support trains arriving and departing the “wrong” way.

Clitheroe is more or less arrivals and departures, though this doesn’t apply for through workings to/from the Hellifield direction.

Has anyone mentioned Neilston yet?

All these are parts of the same station however, so I’m not sure if this is what the OP had in mind.

 

[Taunton]

Bank DLR is normally thus, but it is possible for trains to arrive and depart from the same platform. It happens occasionally, I’m not sure if there might be the odd service at the extremes of the day booked to do so.

This happens at times of service disruption, a train may be run wrong line from Shadwell down to the departure platform at Bank, saving several minutes in the reverse into the headshunt, and clearing the departure platform of crowds at Bank. It can be a challenge for alighting passengers getting through the waiting throng. Another train can follow almost immediately on the normal line and reversal for the second departure. The DLR is fully bidirectional on all lines.

 

[izvor]

York Road was not arrivals only. In the morning peak it was possible to get on at York Road and depart for stations towards Moorgate. But it did only have trains going in the up direction. In the evening peak there were up trains that terminated at York Road then ran empty to Moorgate to form down services.

Correct. I boarded a train at York Road once, and alighted at Kings Cross (Metropolitan), just to see what the fare/ticket would be. I think it was a Saturday morning as it was a DMU. York Road was unstaffed, there was no on-board ticket check (unsurprisingly!) and the exit gates were unstaffed so I never found out!